Two quakes in Iran kill 180 and injured 1,500

Updated:
August 12, 2012 16:08 IST

Two powerful earthquakes killed 180 people and injured about 1,500 in northwest Iran where rescuers frantically combed the rubble of dozens of villages through the night into Sunday. Casualty figures are expected to rise, Iranian officials said, as some of the injured were in a critical condition while others were still trapped under the rubble in inaccessible places and rescue efforts were hampered by the darkness. Six villages were destroyed and about 60 sustained more than 50 percent damage, Iranian media reported.